Tennis Wins Tech's Inaugural Champions Cup
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Florida Tech’s inaugural Champions Cup proved to be a highly competitive competition among the university’s 17 active sports with the Panthers’ men’s and women’s tennis teams emerging as the winner, earning 632.21 points.
Softball earned second place at 573.31 points and women’s soccer rounded out the top three teams at 559.99 points.
“I was pleased to see the initiative our teams gave in the first year of the Champions Cup,” athletic director Bill Jurgens said. “One of the strengths of NCAA Division II is that it aims to provide growth opportunities through academic achievement, high-level athletics competition and service to the community. Our coaches and student-athletes embraced our first-ever Champions Cup competition, and I look for the program to be even more competitive in the future.”
Mandi Bennett, director of student-athlete development, echoed Jurgens’ assessment of year one of the Champions Cup.
“For the first year of the CHAMPS/Life Skills Program, we had great support from all of our teams and several were in the hunt for the championship,” she said. “I think in years to come the excitement will continue to grow and the competition among our athletes will continue to flourish.”
The Florida Tech Champions Cup is based on the CHAMPS (Challenging Athletes' Minds for Personal Success)/Life Skills Program. Created in 1991, it aims to support student-athlete development initiatives of NCAA member institutions and enhance the quality of the student-athlete experience within the context of higher education.
Points for the Champions Cup are earned in seven categories: Commitment to athletic excellence, commitment to academic excellence, commitment to supporting other student-athletes, commitment to career and personal development, commitment to the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), commitment to community service and going above and beyond.
Head coach Bill Macom’s tennis teams led all programs in two categories: commitment to career and personal development and commitment to the SAAC. They also ranked among the top three in commitment to supporting other student-athletes and commitment to community service.
